The Trump Administration got another big win from the federal court system yet again on Thursday, January 15, when a federal appeals court ruled that a lower court judge lacked the authority to order the release of a radical activist named Mahmoud Khalil, siding with President Trump’s administration in the very closely watched immigration case.
As background, in September of 2025, an immigration judge in Louisiana ordered that Khalil, who is a legal permanent resident of the United States, be deported back to Syria or Algeria over his not having disclosed certain information on his green card application, but a separate federal judge ordered that he be released. That ruling came on June 20, after Khalil had been arrested by Homeland Security Investigations agents in March.
It is that separate order that Khalil be released that led to the appellate court ruling that vindicated the Trump Administration. In its Thursday ruling, a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit, located in Philadelphia, ruled 2-1 that the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey lacked authority to make its ruling.
Particularly, the panel ruled that the New Jersey district court that ordered Khalil released “lacked jurisdiction over Khalil’s removal proceedings” under a provision of the Immigration and Naturalization Act, or INA, and as a result of that lack of subject matter jurisdiction in the case, its ruling was invalid.
In its ruling, the appellate court majority said, “Our holdings vindicate essential principles of habeas and immigration law. The scheme Congress enacted governing immigration proceedings provides Khalil a meaningful forum in which to raise his claims later on — in a petition for review of a final order of removal.”
CBS News, reporting on the matter, noted that the American Civil Liberties Union, which is providing legal represenation for Khalil, released a statement noting that the ruling “does not go into effect immediately and the Trump administration cannot lawfully re-detain Mr. Khalil until the order takes formal effect, which will not happen while he has the opportunity to seek immediate review.” Further, it noted that Khalil, for his part, said that the appellate court ruling is “deeply disappointing, but it does not break our resolve.”
The Trump Administration, for its part, released a statement on the judicial vindication in which it argued that the Executive Branch has the authority to deport migrants like Khalil to protect America and the American immigration system from fraud and other, like problems.
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That statement was released through White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson, who told Fox News Digital in a statement: “Mahmoud Khalil was given the privilege of coming to America to study on a student visa he obtained by fraud and misrepresentation. As we have always maintained, the Executive Branch has the lawful authority to take actions that will protect the public and to ensure the integrity of our immigration system.”
“Khalil obtained his visa by willfully and intentionally failing to accurately report information relevant to his background. Those who lie to the government to obtain entry into the United States will face justice,” Jackson further added, according to Fox News Digital.